


A Lonely Martyr

by iamfitzwilliamdarcy



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Daredevil (TV), Gotham (TV)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-20
Updated: 2015-07-20
Packaged: 2018-04-10 07:30:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4382786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamfitzwilliamdarcy/pseuds/iamfitzwilliamdarcy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the aftermath of the police shootings and explosion, an old friend pays Matt a visit. Follow up to Born for This; Gotham/Daredevil crossover</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Lonely Martyr

It was the middle of one of Foggy’s rants about the Man in the Black Mask’s terrorism that Bruce showed up. It was almost a relief because Matt was never quite sure how to defend his vigilante actions—that he hadn’t set off those bombs, that he hadn’t shot those police officers—without revealing himself.

So Bruce’s arrival, while unexpected, was pleasantly timed. Matt could hear him coming up the stairs and almost didn’t believe it at first, not until he opened the door and blustered on in. It’s not that he and Bruce hadn’t kept in contact over the years, including occasionally dropping in on one another, but it’d been a while since then. 

There was a kid with him—his new ward, probably, Matt thought. He’d heard on the news nearly two years ago that Bruce Wayne had taken in the orphaned circus boy; Gotham wasn’t far, and Wayne Industries was important in New York. The media had had a field day with that, treating it like some playboy stunt, but Matt had known the small orphan boy Bruce had been (the small orphan boy he himself had been); it only seemed natural. They were all drawn together, somehow.

The door creaked open, Bruce popped his head around the corner and called out a hello in his deep, booming public voice. Karen transitioned haltingly into secretary mode while Foggy stopped mid-sentence. Matt couldn’t see the look on his face, but he knew Foggy well enough to know that while he hadn’t recognized Bruce Wayne, he had noticed the rich, business man persona coming into their crappy little law office. 

Matt couldn’t tell if Karen had recognized him or not as she stumbled over saying “Welcome to Nelson and Murdock—what can we help you with?”

“Here to see the Murdock half actually,” Bruce said, giving her a smile. He turned to Matt and said, “Long time no see, huh?”

“Now you’re just making fun of the blind guy,” Matt said and he could almost feel Bruce’s wince. “And it’s hard to plan visits when you’re jet setting around the world and I’m a broke lawyer.”

He was smiling though, and stood and offered a hand in Bruce’s general direction. Bruce took it, laughing. “Fair enough. Still, I half-expected you to be a priest one day.”

“They don’t make any money either,” Matt said. Then, he added, “Foggy, Karen, meet Bruce Wayne.”

“I’ve met Mr. Wayne before,” Karen said, softly. “Back when I worked at Union Allied. It was at a finance meeting, I doubt you’d remember,” she added to him. “I was pretty low-level, and it was a meeting about funding. I, uh, I think you slept through most of it.”

 Bruce laughed. “Of course I remember you, Miss Page.”

At the same time, a voice from behind Bruce piped up, “Sleeping through a meeting sure sounds like you, B.” A kid, ten years old and wearing an old hoodie, stepped out from behind Bruce and glanced around the room. Then he added, mournfully, “You forgot to introduce me.” 

“Careful, there, chum,” Bruce said. Then, “This is Dick, my ward. Dick, meet my old friend Matt Murdock and his coworkers, Mr. Nelson and Miss Page.”

“Foggy,” Foggy said, voice overlapping with Karen who was quick to jump in with “Just Karen is fine.” 

Matt turned and put his hand in Dick’s general direction as well. “Nice to meet you,” he said. Dick frowned, studying the offered hand for a minute, before accepting. His hand was small in Matt’s, but firm; he released it quickly, with a “You too.”

Then he turned to Bruce and added, “I thought we were getting ice cream? You said I wouldn’t have to go to any more business meetings. You _promised_.”

“Not a business meeting, Dick,” he said. “I just wanted to drop by and see and old friend.”

There was something in his voice that suggested that wasn’t all. “Do you want to come into my office?”

“If you wouldn’t mind, just for a few minutes,” Bruce said. “You okay hanging out here for a little bit?” he asked Dick. 

Dick shrugged. “I guess so.”

“You won’t have to watch him or anything,” Bruce added to Foggy and Karen while Dick made a face behind them. “He’s good.”

“Right this way then,” Matt said gesturing to his small office area to the right. Bruce went on ahead of him, but as Matt made to follow, Foggy pulled him aside.

“You know Bruce Wayne?” he hissed in his ear, keeping his voice low so the kid wouldn’t hear.

“Casually,” Matt said. “We met when we were kids, still see each other every once in a while.”

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” Foggy said. “Never mind that—do you think he’d fund us?”

Matt shrugged. “I wasn’t planning to ask.”

“Maybe you should,” Foggy said. He went back to Karen while Matt made his way into his office, shutting his door behind him.

“So is this really about old friends dropping in on each other?” Matt said as soon as he was sure the others couldn’t hear.

Bruce raised his eyebrows. “Of course,” he said. “Old friends happen to just be concerned about vigilante alter-egos.” 

“What’s your point?” Matt said.

“I keep up with the news,” he said. “Apparently you’ve taken to shooting cops and blowing up buildings.”

“I’m handling it.”

“Sure seems like it.” Bruce sighed and leaned forward, one elbow resting on the desk. “I’m just saying, if you need help, I know a guy.”

 “Batman can stay out of New York,” Matt said, irritated. “This is _my_ city.”

“Alright,” Bruce said. He was quiet a minute, before speaking again. “Remember that time you quoted Joan of Arc to me? Back when we were kids?”

“Yeah,” Matt said, cautious, not sure where Bruce was going with this.

“You never said she was burnt at stake.” 

“For a crime she didn’t commit, I see your point,” Matt said. Hadn’t Claire said basically the same thing to him—that saints and martyrs died alone? He didn’t quite buy that. “But don’t martyrs win, in the end?”

Bruce shrugged. “I wasn’t planning on finding out.” 

“You didn’t used to mind. You used to be so angry, reckless.”

“I’m still angry, sometimes, at certain things—injustice.” Bruce continued, slowly, as if he hadn’t quite realized his next words were true until he spoke them. “But things can change. You haven’t seen me since I was 22.”

“That kid’s been good for you,” Matt said.

“Yeah,” Bruce agreed, easily, and Matt could hear the small smile in his voice. “Probably the best thing to happen to me, if I’m honest.” Bruce shifted again, sitting back in the chair, and added, “Mostly he’s reminded me I don’t have to be alone. You don’t either. The offer’s always open.”

Matt smiled at him, though he could tell Bruce knew he didn’t buy it. “Thanks,” he said. “But for now, I do.” Sidekicks weren’t exactly his thing. Boxing was a solo sport, after all. 

“Your city, your way,” Bruce said. “You can still join us for ice cream though; no partnerships necessary. Besides, I don’t know many good places around here.”

“I know of one,” Matt said. “Might as well take you. I wouldn’t want you to get the impression that Hell’s Kitchen doesn’t have as good ice cream as Gotham.”

“I’m a lost cause already,” Bruce said, and stood to leave. “A Gotham boy, through and through. It’s Dick you’ll have to convince.”

 “I think I can manage that,” Matt said, and led the way out of the office into the main room, where Dick was showing off for Foggy and Karen.

 He was in the middle of a backflip when they reentered, but the space was too small and he crashed into Bruce and bounced back onto the ground.

 Wincing, hand rubbing at his neck, he smiled up at them and said, “Hey B, so how about that ice cream? I’m practically starved here.”

 “Alright, alright,” Bruce said, lips twitching like he wanted to smile. “Matt’s going to show us a place.”

 “If you don’t mind me tagging along,” Matt put in. “And Foggy and Karen can spare me?”

 “I don’t mind,” Dick said, voice overlapping with Karen’s as she said, “Of course we can, you should go.”

“Excellent,” Bruce said, and he and Dick were already making their way to the door when Foggy held Matt back a minute.

“Just be careful,” he said, voice low. “You know it’s dangerous out there.”

Matt felt a twinge of guilt at keeping Foggy worried and in the dark, but he just said, “I always am,” and followed Bruce and Dick out into the city.

Maybe martyrs did die alone, he thought, listening to Dick and Bruce tease each other and Bruce relay the first time he and Matt had met, but maybe they didn’t have to. He shuddered, suddenly, wondering what would happen if Dick, who he knew was Robin, died. Bruce might be able to handle it, but Matt knew he couldn’t. He’d been right all along—alone was better. He just hoped Bruce didn’t find that out the hard way.

**Author's Note:**

> I know the POV is a little strange, but I still don't entirely get Matt's sensory powers, so it kinda skipped from him to a more omniscient POV. Also it's kind of stopped being solely a Gotham work, so I'm trying to work with that. Also, also shout out to specialrhino for commenting on Born For This about Foggy being like "You know Bruce Wayne" because that got me thinking about this :) And i was upset about Clarie's martyrs die alone because really which ones (making Daredevil more Catholic one step at a time); still unsure how I feel about it though


End file.
